FSNE Medical Ltd Ambulance Station

Updated 4 May 2023

The service registered with CQC in April 2020 and has a had a registered manager in place since then. The service had never previously been inspected by CQC.

The service is an independent ambulance company registered to provide urgent and emergency care and patient transport.

The service is based in a double industrial unit in the Camperdown area of Newcastle upon Tyne. The location is near two main arterial roads in the area, the A1 and A19, which allowed the providers vehicles to be quickly deployed to calls.

The service has a contract with a local NHS ambulance trust to provide urgent and emergency care and patient transport services.

The urgent and emergency care contract was to provide seven ambulances covering 24 hours 365 days of the year through staggered shift start times identified by the NHS ambulance provider.

The urgent and emergency care ambulances were staffed by paramedics and ambulance technicians.

The patient transport contract was to provide 3 ambulances to cover between 11:30am and 9.30pm each day of the week.

The patient transport ambulances were crewed by 2 ambulance care assistants (ACA`s).

The service provided on-site medical support at public and private events and medical repatriations. These services are not regulated by CQC.

The provider employs 90 staff including the management team and has a fleet of 30 vehicles.

Between 1st November 2022 to the date of the inspection the provider had transported 4043 urgent and emergency care patients to hospital, completed 126 patient transport journeys, and 5 patients were transported from an event site to hospital.

The main service provided by this service was urgent and emergency care. Where our findings on patient transport for example, management arrangements, also apply to other services, we do not repeat the information but cross-refer to the urgent and emergency care service.

Updated 4 May 2023

This location has not previously been rated. We rated it as good because.

• The service had enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect patients from abuse, and managed safety well. The service-controlled infection risk well. Staff assessed risks to patients, acted on them and kept good care records. They managed medicines well.
• Staff provided good care and treatment and gave patients pain relief when they needed it. Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of patients and had access to good information.
• Staff treated patients with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, took account of their individual needs. They provided emotional support to patients, families, and carers.
• The service took account of patients’ individual needs and made it easy for people to give feedback. People could access the service when they needed it.
• Leaders ran services well using reliable information systems and supported staff to develop their skills. Staff understood the service’s vision and values, and how to apply them in their work. Staff felt respected, supported, and valued. They were focused on the needs of patients receiving care. Staff were clear about their roles and accountabilities.

Updated 4 May 2023

This service has not previously been rated. We rated it as good because:

• The service had enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect patients from abuse, and managed safety well. The service controlled infection risk well.
• Staff assessed risks to patients, acted on them and kept good care records. The service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them. Staff collected safety information and used it to improve the service.
• Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of patients, advised them on how to lead healthier lives, supported them to make decisions about their care.
• Staff treated patients with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, took account of their individual needs, and helped them understand their conditions. They provided emotional support to patients, families, and carers.
• The service planned care to meet the needs of local people, took account of patients’ individual needs, and made it easy for people to give feedback. People could access the service when they needed it and did not have to wait too long for treatment.
• Leaders ran services well using reliable information systems and supported staff to develop their skills. Staff understood the service’s vision and values, and how to apply them in their work. Staff felt respected, supported, and valued. They were focused on the needs of patients receiving care. Staff were clear about their roles and accountabilities. The service engaged well with patients and the community to plan and manage services and all staff were committed to improving services continually.

Patient Transport Services is a small proportion of ambulance activity. The main service was Urgent Emergency Care. Where arrangements were the same, we have reported findings in the Urgent Emergency Care section.

We rated this service as good because it was safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led.

Updated 4 May 2023

This location has not previously been rated. We rated it as good because:

• The service had enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect patients from abuse, and managed safety well. The service-controlled infection risk well.
• Staff assessed risks to patients, acted on them and kept good care records. They managed medicines well.
• The service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them. Staff collected safety information and used it to improve the service.
• Staff provided good care and treatment and gave patients pain relief when they needed it. The service met agreed response times.
• Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent.
• Staff worked well together for the benefit of patients, advised them on how to lead healthier lives, supported them to make decisions about their care, and had access to good information.

We rated this service as good because it was safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led.